Sunday, October 2, 2011

The Wedding of River Song




It's not the Sun, it's you. The sky is full of a million million voices saying, "Yes, of course we'll help." You've touched so many lives, saved so many people, did you think when your time came you'd really have to do more than just ask? You've decided that the universe is better off without you. But the universe doesn't agree...I can't let you die — without knowing you are loved — by so many and so much — and no one more than me.

--River Song, speaking for every Whovian

Well, "The Wedding of River Song" is one of those love-it-or-hate it episodes. And despite the titular event, it has very little in common with the series five finale. Last season time was being erased, starting with the stars; this time, everything is happening at once. The delightful use of the timey-whimy ball has Holy Roman Emperor Winston Churchill riding into Buckingham Senate on a mammoth, while TV personalities interview Charles Dickens about his latest best-seller.
But the wonderful time stew is tainted by its origins. River refused to kill the Doctor by Lake Silenco, and now time is falling apart. In a wonderful action sequence involving pyramids, eyepatches,huge guns, and more, the Doctor's bowtie is finally used for something more than "cool." All through River's speech on the pyramid, I was absolutely tearing up inside. Several parts of this season leaned on the fourth wall, but River's speech here was so in-character, and at the same time so what every fan would say if he or she had the chance.
And the ending was good. Not quite as good as season five's, but happy at least. Not to mention Amy's face as it sunk in that she's the Doctor's mother-in-law! Some people may disagree with the use of the Tesselecta, but it had me fooled. The Flesh clone would have been too obvious anyway.

1 comment:

  1. I hope to do my own post on "The Wedding of River Song" this week. It will probably be entitled something like, "Why I Liked the Doctor Who Finale Even Though I Thought I'd Hate It." Promsing, right? LOL.
    -Lostariel

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